Northern Powergrid installs 2.5MW battery system in Darlington

Northern Powergrid has installed £4m battery storage unit to support the UK's National Grid by maintaining the electricity network at a stable frequency.

Northern Powergrid will deliver the contract in partnership with UK-based response and energy storage aggregator Kiwi Power

The 2.5MW battery, which is equivalent to the size of three shipping containers, has the capacity to store sufficient electricity to meet the requirements of 2,500 households for two hours.

Every year National Grid will invest £1bn for balancing services and ensuring electricity supply and customer demand are paralleled each second.

The battery storage, which will aid in saving £17 to £40bn by 2050, will minimize the requirement to have fossil fuelled power stations on standby.

The battery project will enhance the power network in the region and will provide energy to over 8m customers.

Northern Powergrid head of trading and innovation Jim Cardwell said: “Batteries are set to transform the way we deliver and use electricity, and will play a key role in achieving the Government’s long-term vision for a smart, flexible, low-carbon energy system. We will use this project to learn how they can help us deliver best service to our customers.”

Northern Powergrid commercial development manager Melissa MacLennan said: “The electricity landscape is changing rapidly with the growth of renewables, batteries and electric vehicles. This project is a significant step in our evolution into a distribution system operator (DSO) with an active role in seizing the opportunities these technologies offer to cut the cost of running the electricity system, improve its reliability and reduce its carbon footprint.”